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Atlas Venture CERTIFIED

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FIRM OVERVIEW: Large Private VC founded in 1980 based out of Londond, UK (Asia / Pacific)

FIRM DESCRIPTION: We're an international venture capital firm that has helped build over 300 companies in the last 25 years.
We don't just invest in companies. We partner with them. And our team brings decades of operating experience, market knowledge, and a global network to every company in the portfolio.

Posted by
Chairman & CEO
on 2007-08-20

PUBLIC:

Working with the partners at Atlas Ventures London was a pure pleasure across many dimensions. The team offered consistent support and solid business advise throughout my tenure.

At the Board level, Atlas helped establish strong governance procedures, fair and balanced compensation guidelines, drove several key relationships, catalyzed our sales model, and helped sooth rather strained Board dynamics. They are very well connected and quite market savvy. As a shareholder, Atlas was very reasonable, rational, and responsive.

Large and in part due to their support and wherewithal, the company successfully restructured and exited to everyone's benefit. Atlas was there though the thick and thin, which is something every entrepreneur needs to consider at length when selecting funding sources. Markets will always have ups and downs - having a sophisticated and experienced venture partner can make a huge difference in the end result.

Posted by
robitussin
on 2007-05-12

PUBLIC:

They reached out to us and invited us to come in and pitch. In each of three meetings in SF they were either late or didn't show up at all, were rude and constantly interrupted our presentations, and just flat out had no respect for our industry expertise or our time. In contrast to every other VC their behavior was flatly unprofessional. It is no wonder they don't get in on many of the good deals, at least in the US. It's one thing to be arrogant, it's another thing to have fervent opinions in a space in which they have absolutely no authority. Complete waste of time. We finally killed the due diligence because we couldn't imagine any of these guys as productive board members should they actually invest.

Posted by
Disruptive project
on 2007-08-31

PUBLIC:

We are a pre-launch company and I must say that I have got a very good experience with Atlas Ventures France/UK and especially with Fred Destin, a very smart, experienced, well connected, entrepreneur minded Atlas partner working on disruptive projects.

He has been working with us hand in hand not only to give feedback and expand our vision but also to build and rehearse our pitch on a regular basis. He is too busy to do that with many companies, so many thanks and kuddos to him.

We are still too early for them but they keep the communication channel open. I can't thank enough Fred and Atlas for their great contribution and the air support introduction to key people who could help our project to evolve in the right direction. If you are based in Europe, he is definitely someone you should meet if you work on a disruptive global play

A successful partnership with any VC comes down to the same basic things; being able to get on really well with the people you're dealing with and continuing to do so when things get tough. Apart from the obvious point of 'chemistry' which is a very personal thing, perhaps the biggest element to ensure success on these two factors is the intelligence of the partners assigned to you. In all my dealings with VC's - some of those at Atlas rank amongst the sharpest around...

Posted by
anonymous
on 2007-08-16

PUBLIC:

We already had backing from one of the top VCs around and went to Atlas to try to syndicate the next round. I had never pitched to a more chaotic group - kept on cutting in with pet questions which were irrelevant to the topic being presented - i found this to be rude/arrogant. Had to interface with some junior folks on day to day level - some of whom have limited real business experience (but have textbook knowledge) and therefore didn't find the discussions with them to be particularly stimulating and made it a bit difficult to get excited about their real value add. Decided that they weren't really right for us after the pitch.

We have had a great relationship with Atlas Ventures' Boston office. In particular, Healy Jones, a recent associate from The Wharton School, has served as a great mentor to our startup. The Atlas team is very knowledgeable about the consumer Internet space and they took the time to understand our business and continue to make relevant introductions. I would highly recommend entrepreneurs, who have the opportunity, to meet with Atlas.

We raised over £3m from Atlas in London in a previous business. Our particular contact, Vic Morris, was terrific. Very astute and supportive. Unfortunately after the dot.com crash of 2000 they lost interest in us and were out foxed by a trade investor who moved the company to dependence, worked on the board and chairman, ousted the founders (inc. me!) and then bought the company at a knock-down valuation.

Posted by
Euroman
on 2008-08-25

PUBLIC:

Atlas remain one of the few Europe based VCs doing early stage biotech but this is very limited. Like most they have retreated e.g. spin-outs from pharma companies and later stage investments. They clearly work hard but are prone to being late and for a number of people not turning up. They use pitches as market research for some of their portfolio companies and ideas, make sure you have done your groundwork.

Posted by
jscohen99
on 2008-02-05

PUBLIC:

Atlas seed funded us after a very quick process (<2 mos). Because we were coming from jump they spent a fair bit of time thinking through the business with us and the plan to get to market. Once we had the funding in place they've allowed us to get on with it.

Posted by
cereal
on 2008-01-17

PUBLIC:

I give Atlas high marks, not because they have funded some great companies I know (including one of mine), but because I have seen their team execute before, during, and after the deal.

Atlas has some great hardworking partners, and I can personally recommend Axel Bichara, Eric Jerpe, and Jeff Fagnan. But honestly, the entire team (I don't know about the biotech folks at all) has helped us at some point.

I have relied on the team and my Atlas investors for crucially important advice and support. It doesn't come up that often, but when we really need to execute an op at warp speed, they really mobilize each and every time.

The most important contribution, in my opinion, has been help in recruiting top talent. Like any startup, we grow in bursts, and we need top talent, and we need to move quickly. These guys really scramble then. Excellent. There are several positions we filled, where Atlas guys made the difference - totally sealing the deal. Some key hires took months, and I know some Atlas partners who have phenomenal endurance. Jeff Fagnan could push a car up a mountain. My team has to work hard, so I like to see investors who do too.

Inside Atlas are some partners investing aggressively in wild, early-stage plays. It seems like they are funding really interesting deals these days. I recommend snooping around the partner directory, or asking around, as some of the partners are doing very early-stage deals in interesting spaces. Atlas is a big firm, so it is important to get a partner who is a good fit for you and your company.

I have watched Atlas drive several great deals to exit with some companies I know (and with founders I know). And they worked with the founders on those to make sure they were happy with the timing and the structure. They work with me and my founders (and our CEO), to make sure we stay happy too.

Oh and I can always get a hold of them instantly and they are on time (early actually) for our meetings. So I don't know what that other post was about.

Diligence took a while, but we were a radical company raising a Round A in a tough economy. Deal terms were tough but fair. The negotiation process went fine. We had a term sheet for higher valuation and better terms, but the Atlas team more than made up for a slightly lower valuation. In hind sight, a no brainer win for us.

Posted by
XSReturns
on 2009-02-14

PUBLIC:

Peter is a fantastic guy to connect with. He spent over two hours with me the first time we met; listening (!), discussing our space, our business and giving thoughtful feedback. He did not hesitate to make introductions in his network and followed through on everything he said. Just one of those guys you want to build a relationship with regardless of whether you close a round with Atlas or not.